Hi All,
It's been so long since my last post..Things are going well with Lilly!
She has grown into a big girl 65lbs!! So of course once again I am turning to the experts for some answers

1) We are moving across country and the drive will take us 5 days..Any tips to make this easier on the her? I feed honest kitchen with wings and meat but that will not be possible on the drive..Should I just stick with the honest kitchen?

2) She STILL loves to smell crotches...Ideas to stop this?

3) As of late everytime a new person comes over she acts all scared and protective??? Not sure what that is about.

4) Playing with other dogs..I know the opinions are all over the board on this one..However I would really like her to be more social..She has a few dog buddies and her play is really ROUGH..When introducing her to other dogs she goes on the defense immediatly..Maybe this is MY issue but our new house had a dog park right next door..I would like that to be an option for playtime..Ideas??? Thoughts?

5) The COME!~ I totally blew it on this one..She WILL NOT COME when outside..Her nose TOTALLY takes over and she is distracted (Lab/Walker Hound) Last week the hubby had her on a bike ride..she runs full out..got home..he unhooked her from the bike..she caught a scent of something and was GONE..She made it over a MILE before he could catch her..She would not stop..I know our fault in training..She ran to a house with small dogs in the yard and started chasing the dogs..I was MORTIFIED!! REALLY..I know this is my fault..Ideas on fixing this??????

I am open to all your opinions..Thanks for the input as always!!

K

Are you staying in a hotel at night during this trip? Or will it be a switch driving duties with someone and keep going kind of deal?

 Quote: Michael Bennett

Are you staying in a hotel at night during this trip? Or will it be a switch driving duties with someone and keep going kind of deal?

No we have to drive 2 cars..So hotel everynight PLUS we will have our cat..We are leaving Georgia and moving back to Las Vegas it's about 3000 miles..maybe 6-8 hours a day driving...
Both pets are fine in the car..just not sure if I should have dog in kennel the whole time or if the front seat (seat belt) idea is better..

We used to take long vacations all over the country and always took our dogs, so I have a little experience here.

1) I've done a lot of research on Honest Kitchen and recently added it to my feeding rotation. My understanding is all of the formulas are considered nutritionally complete right out of the box, except "Preference," which is made to have meat added to it. So I would think, if you're using anything but "Preference," she will be fine for five days without the added meat.

2) Thanks for giving me a great laugh! I'm not laughing AT you, Kristina, I'm laughing WITH you. I have one who probably should be a member of Crotch-Sniffers Anonymous, too. He's not cured but we're continuously working on it!

Your (3) and (4) I don't feel qualified to comment on.

5) I would be very concerned about this one, especially since you are moving to another state where she will not be familiar with the neighborhood. Personally, if she was my dog, she would never be outside, in an unfenced yard, without being on a long line with me holding the other end. I'm just too paranoid about losing my dog. I have a fenced yard but one of mine, when he was younger, still would not come in when called. I ended up using an e-collar, which worked for him, but I'll leave it to others to say whether this is what you should try or not.

In your second post, you ask whether she should be left in her kennel or put in the front seat with a seat belt. I would stick with whatever is her usual routine for riding in the car. It sounds like it is the kennel. Six to eight hours in a car, stopping for potty breaks, can be handled for the length of your trip. Not saying she won't get a little tired of it, but you could relieve the boredom with stuffed Kongs, everlasting treat balls, an occasional recreational bone, etc.

All this is JMO. Have a safe and pleasant trip and I hope you love your new home!

Hey Christina:

Sounds like quite the adventure.

1. You’ll be driving for few days, I would try and stop every couple of hours, not only for the pup to stretch her legs but you guys too. Long line/leash and make sure she’s tagged up the ying yang. Cell phone numbers, final destination address, etc.

2. Crotch sniffing, although embarrassing is pretty natural dog behavior. Like your off-leash recall, sounds like this dog has very little training and you have no control over her actions. I would be teaching an alternate greeting behavior. Dogs don’t need to get up close and personal with every human they meet. I would be controlling her on introductions/meetings and teaching an alternate behavior in its place. New person, calm sit, yummy reward.

3. Scared and protective are not synonymous. She’s showing fear and you’re not protecting her. She’s been forced to take situations into her own hands and she’s taking her fear to a new level. This will not turn out good. You need to work on your leadership. Remove her from these situations before she gets a chance to escalate.

4. You may want her to play and be social with other dogs, she may not. The aggressive play tells me she hasn’t been socialized properly (too many uncontrolled interactions) where she’s been left to fend for herself. She’s learned to play rough, on the offensive, protecting herself in anticipation of the other dog getting the upper hand. I would only be allowing controlled meetings until she starts to learn appropriate dog play. Dog parks are never a good idea.

5. You need to go back to square one with your recall, perhaps even change the name of the command. This is a great place to start: http://leerburg.com/flix/searchResults.php?searchfor=recall

Sounds like you’ve got some new beginnings on the horizon. A good time to start to make some changes in Lilly’s life as well. Lots of experienced folks on this site to help you along the way.

 Quote: cheri grissom

We used to take long vacations all over the country and always took our dogs, so I have a little experience here.

1) I've done a lot of research on Honest Kitchen and recently added it to my feeding rotation. My understanding is all of the formulas are considered nutritionally complete right out of the box, except "Preference," which is made to have meat added to it. So I would think, if you're using anything but "Preference," she will be fine for five days without the added meat.

2) Thanks for giving me a great laugh! I'm not laughing AT you, Kristina, I'm laughing WITH you. I have one who probably should be a member of Crotch-Sniffers Anonymous, too. He's not cured but we're continuously working on it!

Your (3) and (4) I don't feel qualified to comment on.

5) I would be very concerned about this one, especially since you are moving to another state where she will not be familiar with the neighborhood. Personally, if she was my dog, she would never be outside, in an unfenced yard, without being on a long line with me holding the other end. I'm just too paranoid about losing my dog. I have a fenced yard but one of mine, when he was younger, still would not come in when called. I ended up using an e-collar, which worked for him, but I'll leave it to others to say whether this is what you should try or not.

In your second post, you ask whether she should be left in her kennel or put in the front seat with a seat belt. I would stick with whatever is her usual routine for riding in the car. It sounds like it is the kennel. Six to eight hours in a car, stopping for potty breaks, can be handled for the length of your trip. Not saying she won't get a little tired of it, but you could relieve the boredom with stuffed Kongs, everlasting treat balls, an occasional recreational bone, etc.

All this is JMO. Have a safe and pleasant trip and I hope you love your new home!

Thanks so much!! I will stick to the honest kitchen...
She usually rides in the front around town BUT long trip we have used the crate..
On #5 yeah Hubby realized it was his fault..We have the bike lead which we put her on and NORmally she is so tired she just stops and waits for us..Well not this day..Leasson learned on that one..Was there a video that taught you how to use the e-collar on the "Come"?
I REALLY want to get this down..It's fustrating outside as her NOSE just takes over the brain..
Yeah the Crotch sniffing is not a big deal to dog people BUT the non-dog lovers have a big issue with this..What techniques are you using for that?

Great idea on the treat balls and bones..I'll stock up..

We hit the road May 15th so getting everything organized!

Thanks so much for taking the time to help me out
K

 Quote: CJ Barrett

Hey Christina:

Sounds like quite the adventure.

1. You’ll be driving for few days, I would try and stop every couple of hours, not only for the pup to stretch her legs but you guys too. Long line/leash and make sure she’s tagged up the ying yang. Cell phone numbers, final destination address, etc.

2. Crotch sniffing, although embarrassing is pretty natural dog behavior. Like your off-leash recall, sounds like this dog has very little training and you have no control over her actions. I would be teaching an alternate greeting behavior. Dogs don’t need to get up close and personal with every human they meet. I would be controlling her on introductions/meetings and teaching an alternate behavior in its place. New person, calm sit, yummy reward.

3. Scared and protective are not synonymous. She’s showing fear and you’re not protecting her. She’s been forced to take situations into her own hands and she’s taking her fear to a new level. This will not turn out good. You need to work on your leadership. Remove her from these situations before she gets a chance to escalate.

4. You may want her to play and be social with other dogs, she may not. The aggressive play tells me she hasn’t been socialized properly (too many uncontrolled interactions) where she’s been left to fend for herself. She’s learned to play rough, on the offensive, protecting herself in anticipation of the other dog getting the upper hand. I would only be allowing controlled meetings until she starts to learn appropriate dog play. Dog parks are never a good idea.

5. You need to go back to square one with your recall, perhaps even change the name of the command. This is a great place to start: http://leerburg.com/flix/searchResults.php?searchfor=recall

Sounds like you’ve got some new beginnings on the horizon. A good time to start to make some changes in Lilly’s life as well. Lots of experienced folks on this site to help you along the way.

Hi Thanks so much for your input
I have her tagged up..Micro chips, name tage, rabies tag..yup that is all good..

As fas as training I have worked REALLY hard with her on training..Did the Leerburg Pack leadership..She was attacked when she was a puppy and then left for dead that is how I ended up with her..so as far as training..She knows all of the following, sit, wait, slow, leave it, touch, bed, kennel and down..
I think it is my fault when people come over..it's the rush to the door and letting them it..Maybe I have her in leash first??Then open door..??

So as for me protecting her would that be have goto kennel first and then let her out when the environment is calm?

Thank You for the link on the recall..Need to invest in a longline..TODAY!!

Would you allow play on the longline..How do I start with appropriate dog play..?

Thank You Thank You!!

More please

The move is exciting just want the pets to feel the least amount of stress

 Quote: kristina woolf

Was there a video that taught you how to use the e-collar on the "Come"?

Yeah the Crotch sniffing is not a big deal to dog people BUT the non-dog lovers have a big issue with this..What techniques are you using for that?

As far as the e-collar, I have to offer a disclaimer that I am no expert. I have used it only for a couple limited issues, and it wasn't long before, in most instances, all I had to do was use the "beep" function. Mine is a SportDog 400 and it came with a detailed training manual and DVD, both of which I studied thoroughly. I know Leerburg offers at least one DVD on using an e-collar. But CJ's advice about starting from square one on the recall is definitely what I would do at this point.

As far as crotch-sniffing, I've explained to my dog that my species does NOT consider this polite! Nine out of ten times, it's me he does it to. That's his standard greeting, a quick push of the nose into the crotch. I try to anticipate it and prevent him from doing it in the first place, and that's how I handle it with other people, prevention, direct to a sit first, etc. On myself, if I'm mentally sharp and quick enough to see it coming, I will place a hand in front of the "target area" to deflect him and use the "leave it" command. If your dog doesn't yet know "leave it," that's a command I would work on as it's useful for many, many things.

eta: We were typing at the same time. I see you have taught "leave it."

Edited by Cheri Grissom (04/22/2011 10:21 AM)
Edit reason: eta

 Quote: cheri grissom

 Quote: kristina woolf

Was there a video that taught you how to use the e-collar on the "Come"?

Yeah the Crotch sniffing is not a big deal to dog people BUT the non-dog lovers have a big issue with this..What techniques are you using for that?

As far as the e-collar, I have to offer a disclaimer that I am no expert. I have used it only for a couple limited issues, and it wasn't long before, in most instances, all I had to do was use the "beep" function. Mine is a SportDog 400 and it came with a detailed training manual and DVD, both of which I studied thoroughly. I know Leerburg offers at least one DVD on using an e-collar. But CJ's advice about starting from square one on the recall is definitely what I would do at this point.

As far as crotch-sniffing, I've explained to my dog that my species does NOT consider this polite! Nine out of ten times, it's me he does it to. That's his standard greeting, a quick push of the nose into the crotch. I try to anticipate it and prevent him from doing it in the first place, and that's how I handle it with other people, prevention, direct to a sit first, etc. On myself, if I'm mentally sharp and quick enough to see it coming, I will place a hand in front of the "target area" to deflect him and use the "leave it" command. If your dog doesn't yet know "leave it," that's a command I would work on as it's useful for many, many things.

eta: We were typing at the same time. I see you have taught "leave it."

I love it! Yes I worked hard with Lilly she was a "HOT MESS' when I got her..Our house is really calm and quiet so I think she picks up on that..I work from home so she is under my feet all day as I work..She is totally kennel trained for when I leave or for sleeping Yeah the crotch sniffing is for sure on me and I use the block as well..
I am going to get a longline today and start again with the "Come"..So intresting that "That" is the one that didn't take..Still trying to figure out what went wronr..Maybe just not enough practice..I am hoping at the new dog park I can go EARLY in the AM and avoid the crowd and practice more with her..

Hey Kristina, sorry, spelled your name wrong in that previous post. Notice I got the pups name right. I’m the same way in person too. Can never remember people’s names but I rarely forget a dog’s.

And yes, excellent start with the guests. Door bell rings, take the extra minute to get Lilly settled in her crate. When things calm down and she’s nice and calm, bring her out. I would just have her sit by side to begin with. She doesn’t need people in her face petting her and they don’t need their crotches sniffed. Let them know she’s in training and just ignore her.

And wow, sorry to hear about her attack. Very common with dogs that have been through this kind of trauma to be reactive to other dogs. I would avoid all dog on dog interactions at this point. She doesn’t “need” dog friends and from the sound of her actions, she may not appreciate being put in those situations.

When you start to develop a new circle of friends and meet dogs that you know are in control, calm and safe for her to be around, you can start slow introductions. Just in their presence to begin with, don’t force her to interact with them. If she’s whiny and scared/pulling/assertively trying to get to them, remove her. When she learns to be calm and relaxed in their presence, you can slowly start to allow closer contact.

A slow process with this type of recovery but one she will appreciate your leadership in.